Robert Grandt works in the grow room at Denver cultivation facility 3D Cannabis Center in March 2015. (RJ Sangosti, Denver Post file)

Vermont marijuana legalization bill advances in Senate

Published: Jan 29, 2016, 10:52 am • Updated: Jan 29, 2016, 10:52 am

By The Associated Press

MONTPELIER, Vt. — The Judiciary Committee of the Vermont Senate has voted 4-1 to approve a bill that would legalize possession of up to an ounce of marijuana by people in Vermont who are 21 or older.

Friday’s vote came a day after six physicians’ groups came out against the legislation, citing what they see as the ill health effects of marijuana. If it passes the full Senate, the bill would go to the House, where many doubt it will pass this year.

The bill envisions marijuana being sold in special stores. It would continue the ban on home cultivation, requiring that the plant be grown in tightly controlled, secure plots.

Committee Chairman Sen. Richard Sears says the measure now goes to the Senate Finance Committee to decide how marijuana should be taxed.